Computer graphics processing methods and systems for presentation of graphics objects or text in a wagering environment with market chaining

ABSTRACT

Computer graphics processing systems and methods are provided for the presentation of graphic objects or text in a wagering environment. In at least one embodiment, the systems and methods present graphic objects on a graphic user interface screen that includes at least one of a plurality of betting lines, including a reference betting line, such as a market betting line having a value that corresponds to a value of a reference variable associated with an object, a high line having a value corresponding to an amount above the reference variable value, a low line having a value corresponding to an amount below the reference variable value, etc. The market, high, and low lines may be arranged spatially on the interface screen based at least on the values of each of the lines. The interface screen includes a least one computer generated graphic object associated with each of the betting lines that is selectable for submitting at least one of an up bet request and a down bet request. The at least one graphic object may be rotating or moving based on the tradeable state associated with the graphic object.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 11/467,047 entitled “Computer Graphics Processing Methods andSystems for Presentation of Graphics Objects or Text in a WageringEnvironment”, filed Aug. 24, 2006; which is a continuation-in-partapplication of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/794,666, filed Mar.5, 2004.

Each of the above-referenced applications are incorporated by referenceherein as part of the present disclosure for purposes of writtendescriptions and enablements only.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present application relates graphics processing methods and systemsand, more particularly, to a system and a method for displaying graphicobjects or text on an interactive display in a wagering environment.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with at least one aspect of the present disclosure,computer graphics processing systems and methods are provided for thepresentation of graphic objects or text in a wagering environment. In atleast one embodiment, a computer graphics processing method is providedfor presenting graphic objects on a graphic user interface screen thatincludes the step or steps of receiving a request for wageringinformation, and causing the graphic interface screen to be displayed ata user interface. The graphic interface screen includes a referencebetting line, such as a market betting line having a value thatcorresponds to a value of a reference variable associated with anobject, such as the market value of an object. Alternatively oradditionally, the interface screen may include a high line having avalue corresponding to an amount above the reference variable value, alow line having a value corresponding to an amount below the referencevariable value or at least one or a plurality of spread lines. Themarket, high, low, and spread lines may be arranged spatially on theinterface screen based at least on the values of each of the lines.

In one embodiment, the interface screen includes a least one graphicobject, computer generated or otherwise, associated with each of thebetting lines. The at least one graphic object is selectable forsubmitting at least one of an up bet request and a down bet request. Theat least one graphic object may be rotating or moving when in atradeable state. The interface screen may further include oddsassociated with the at least one of the up bet request and the down betrequest superimposed over the graphic object. In one embodiment, theinterface screen and/or at least one of the market or reference bettingline, the high line, the low line, the spread lines, and the odds arerefreshing automatically to reflect movement in the market value of theobject.

Additional aspects of the present invention will be apparent in view ofthe description which follows.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

To provide a more complete understanding of the present invention andfeatures and advantages thereof, reference is made to the followingdescription, taken in conjunction with the accompanying figures, whereinlike reference numerals represent like parts, in which:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a gaming system for wagering on events in amarket environment in accordance with at least one embodiment of thesystems disclosed herein;

FIG. 2 is an interface screen for use in accordance with at least oneembodiment of the methods and systems disclosed herein;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a central controller in accordance with atleast one embodiment of the systems disclosed herein;

FIG. 4A is a flowchart illustrating a method for wagering in a marketenvironment in accordance with at least one embodiment of the methodsdisclosed herein;

FIG. 4B is a flowchart illustrating a method for validating at least onebet request in accordance with at least one embodiment of the methodsdisclosed herein; and

FIGS. 5-11 are interface screens for use in accordance with at least oneembodiment of the methods and systems disclosed herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a gaming system 10, according to at leastone embodiment of the systems disclosed herein, which provides at leastone graphic user interface screen allowing users therewith to placewagers or bets on events occurring in a financial or other marketenvironment, as disclosed herein. In one embodiment, gaming system 10comprises at least one central controller 40 coupled or otherwise incommunication with a over a communications network 18 with at least oneuser interface 16, for use by one or multiple end users 12. Gamingsystem 10 may also include or be associated with an administrator module50 and a financial market data element 60.

User interface 16 may include one or a number of elements that provideconnectivity and/or interactivity for one or more end users 12 withother elements within gaming system 10. User interface 16 may include,for example, a processor, a memory, one or more input and/or outputdevices, such as a keyboard, mouse, display, etc., an Internet element20, a wireless element 22, a casino facility element 24, a television(or display) element 28, etc. Each one of the elements may provide itsrelative functionality in the form of hardware, software, or acombination thereof.

Central controller 40 may include a processor 42 and a memory element44, and may also include software stored thereon that when executedperforms one or more of the steps of the methods or otherwise providesthe functionality described herein. In one embodiment, centralcontroller 40 generally provides the backend functionality for themethods described herein and user interface 16 provides the front-endfunctionality.

Gaming system 10 may, in certain embodiments, provide increasedflexibility and improved opportunities for diversification in wageringon events in a number of financial or other markets. Although themethods and systems may be described herein by way of example inrelation to wagering on events occurring in financial markets, such asone or more indices achieving a certain price level at the end of abetting session, it is understood that the methods and systems of thepresent application are equally applicable to betting on other events,e.g., unrelated to financial markets, such as sporting events, horse ordog racing, casino games, lotteries, etc., and is thus not limitedthereto. Moreover, although the methods and systems may be described interms of market price or value, it is further understood that themethods and systems of the present application are applicable tonon-price reference variables, such as trading volume, bid size, askingsize, earnings, sports and non-sport scores or metrics, jackpots, etc.,and is similarly not limited thereto. The methods and systems of thepresent application are generally applicable for wagering on the valueof a reference variable associated with any object, which value issubject to change over time. As such, the present application providesmethods and systems that provide users therewith wagering opportunitiesbased on whether the value of the reference variable achieves a specificlevel at a particular time.

In certain embodiments, the gaming system 10 provides bettingopportunities or betting products for wagering on events occurring infinancial or other markets and determines the odds for the occurrence ofthe events in the market. The terms “betting opportunities” and “bettingproducts” are used herein synonymously. For example, system 10 maydetermine the odds for betting on the value of a security, a pluralityof securities, an index, etc., moving in a certain direction orachieving a certain price level or levels in a moving market, asdiscussed below, and may further provide betting opportunities onwhether the value of the security satisfies at least one of thesebetting conditions at one or a plurality of times over the trading day.In this respect, the gaming system 10 may divide the trading day intomultiple intraday betting sessions each having an opening time andexpiration. The trading day may therefore be considered to have multipleintraday expiries. The betting sessions may be object specific orgeneric for all objects. That is, the opening time may be scheduled tooccur at different times for certain objects or at the same for allobjects.

Gaming system 10 may further include a pricing engine, e.g., a softwarecomponent or module, that is operable to: 1) determine one or a set ofmoving or static odds around static or moving market lines,respectively; 2) determine a correct moving market line in relation tostatic odds; and/or 3) to receive betting information in order todetermine and/or display liability management information in relation tothe financial fixed odds betting activity.

With regard to moving odds/static line betting products, system 10provides an interface screen that displays odds around a referencebetting line that has a value that remains unchanged for the bettingsession, or, for daily expiries, throughout the trading day. In thisinstance, system 10 may set the value of the betting line at the valueof the reference variable at the beginning of the betting session, i.e.,the start time, and determine the odds for the value of the referencevariable achieving, at a later time, a level above or below the initialvalue of the reference variable. System 10 may further determine theodds for the value of the reference variable achieving a differentlevel, preferably dynamically, at different times throughout the bettingsession, such as to reflect real-time changes in the value of theobject. System 10 may therefore provide betting opportunities that allowthe end user 12 to place a bet on whether the value of the referencevariable achieves a level at the close of the betting session that isabove or below the reference variable's initial value with odds and acorresponding payout based on the odds determined and/or set based onthe value of the reference variable at the time the end user 12 submitsthe bet.

For example, assume that the reference betting line is a static marketline, e.g., that corresponds to the market value of the Dow at thebeginning of a betting session (T₁) is at 11192.8. At a later time inthe betting session (T₂) the value of the Dow is at a 11192.5 level withodds of the Dow ending above the 11192.8 level at T₂ at 10/11, and oddsof the Dow ending below the 11192.8 level at T₂ at 8/11, as shown inFIG. 5. The odds have generally moved from the initial value of the Dowat the start of the betting session based at least on the market valueof the Dow at T₂. The end user 12 may then place a bet at time T₂ on theup position and “bet up” with a corresponding payout on the wager (W) of(W)*(10/11) or on the down position or “bet down” with a correspondingpayout on the wager of (W)*(8/11). The end user 12 may also place betson the same static market line at later times in the betting session, asshown in FIGS. 6-8, with odds determined at those later times thatreflect movement in the market value of the object, e.g., odds based onthe market value at the later time. The end user 12 may also place betson a high line, low line, or spread lines, as discussed in greaterdetail below.

In addition to moving odds/static line wagering, gaming system 10 mayalso provide static odds/moving line betting products that allows endusers 12 to place bets in a dynamic market, where the reference bettingline, e.g., the market line, has a value that corresponds to the currentvalue of the reference variable at different times in the bettingsession to reflect any market shifts and movements. In this instance,system 10 may provide an interface screen with a reference betting linethat reflects changes in the value of the reference value, in real-timeor otherwise, and determine the odds for the object achieving adifferent level, e.g., above or below the then current level, at the endof the betting session or trading day. System may then provide bettingopportunities allowing the end user 12 to select the then current valuefor the reference variable and place a bet on whether the value of thereference variable achieves a level above or below the then currentselected level at the close of the betting session, with odds and acorresponding payout based thereon essentially static or unchanged atleast during the betting session. The static odds, in the moving lineembodiment, may be fixed at any time, including at the beginning of thetrading day, the beginning of the betting session, etc. For example, anend user 12 may bet that the value of the then current level of the Dowcloses either above or below the then current 11252.9 level at a firsttime in the betting session (T₁), as shown in FIG. 10, or that the Dowcloses above or below the then current 11252.0 level at a second time(T₂), where (T₂>T₁), as shown in FIG. 11. As can be seen in FIGS. 10-11,the odds for wagers on the moving market line are static at 5/6 for bothtimes and in both directions.

As noted above, an end user 12 may bet that a selected market, e.g., theFTSE, will close at a value that is above or below the value of thestatic or moving market line values. End users 12 may also enjoyadditional betting opportunities on static and moving betting linesother than the market betting line. In one embodiment, system 10provides betting opportunities based on the theory that the market willclose above or below certain levels relative to the static or movingreference betting line, such as an amount, for example, approximately 1%above or below the value of the market line, or any other percentage,such as 0.5% to 10%, or more, or approximately 9 units above or belowthe value of the market line, or any other quantity, such as 1 to 100units (ticks), or more.

Thus, in the moving odds embodiment, gaming system 10 may providebetting opportunities on a high line level and/or a low line level thatis above or below, respectively, a certain amount, such as a percentageor a certain number of units from the value of the reference bettingline, such as the static market line, as shown in FIGS. 5-9. End users12 may then place bets on whether the value of the variable closes aboveor below the high and/or low line values. In this instance, system 10may determine the moving odds for the high, low, or any other linelevels, preferably dynamically and on a real-time basis during thebetting session.

In the static odds embodiment, the gaming system 10 may provide similarbetting opportunities on a high line level and a low line level, and mayalso provide betting opportunities on lines based on a spread around thecurrent value of the reference variable, such as the moving market line,whereby the spread lines include odds that are better (from theperspective of the bettor) than those relating to the non-spread movingmarket line. Such odds may be essentially even (1/1), as opposed to, forexample, 10/11 type odds for the market line. System 10 may thereforedetermine the moving value of the high, low, and spread line levels, inorder to maintain the desired static odds, preferably dynamically and ona real-time basis during the betting session.

Daily expiries, as well as other intraday and longer-term expiries forthe betting sessions may also be accommodated by gaming system 10. Betsmay be placed on any suitable financial market, such as the FTSE, theGerman DAX, the French CAC, the NASDAQ, the American Exchange (AMEX),the New York Stock Exchange, the Nikkei, the bond or treasury markets,and the Hang Seng Index, etc. Thus, gaming system 10 may facilitatefrequent bet expiries for betting in relation to any number of suitablefinancial instruments. Bets or betting sessions may also extend tominute-by-minute or thirty-second expiries, or any multiples thereof oramounts there between. On this basis, end users 12 may be provided withthe opportunity to bet on multiple events/scenarios throughout thetrading day. Accordingly, a targeted financial market can represent afoundation for regular intraday betting activity.

In at least one embodiment, system 10 provides betting sessions with abet expiry, at least one of: every five minutes, every half hour, everyhour, etc., throughout market hours of the trading day, and readilyextended to accommodate defined future time frames. For example, wherethe trading day is divided into sessions having an expiry every fiveminutes, the wagering opportunities could be defined for the FTSE market(in GMT times) as follows: (Opening Bell) 10.00 am, 10.05 am, 10.10 am,10.15 am, etc., and continuing to 17.05, 17.10, 17.15, 17.20 (ClosingBell). The same principles apply to other session durations.

System 10 may also allow end users 12 to specify an expiry that theyhave elected. This may be the imminent forthcoming expiry, or any lateroccurring expiry. Hence, a client in a betting shop or in an on-lineenvironment may be provided a betting opportunity every minutethroughout the day. Settlement could subsequently follow the bet expiryin any suitable manner, e.g., immediately after the expiration, duringand/or concurrent with the running of the next or any other laterbetting cycle, or otherwise.

Gaming system 10 may also provide end users the ability to place bets onsessions with a non-time specified expiry. In such a scenario, a betexpires at a defined delay measured from the moment the bet was struckas opposed to defined or scheduled expiries throughout the tradingsession. This would allow end user 12 to place a bet at any timethroughout the day knowing that the bet so placed will expire, forinstance, five minutes, or any other predetermined time after the betwas placed. For example, a bet placed at 12:07:35 with a five minuteexpiry specified will settle beginning at 12:12:35. Thus, bets would notnecessarily expire for all participants at nominal intervals, butinstead expire on a defined post, i.e., on a delayed basis, from thetime the bet is placed.

Another capability that flows from the arrangement of gaming system isthat sophisticated participants would be able to continually adjusttheir overall risk participation or exposure, for instance, by bettingone way in an individual transaction and taking the opposite positionwith respect to the outcomes of a plurality of other events. Forexample, a participant might first wager that the NASDAQ will appreciatein price, but also take a short position in the Russell 2000. Such ablended risk-participation strategy allows participants to effectivelybalance or hedge their wagers and their betting portfolio in a mannersimilar to an investor hedging an investment portfolio by offsettingtrading in the underlying securities.

End users 12 are clients, customers, prospective investors, or anyindividuals or entities wishing to place a wager. End users 12 may alsoseek to access or to initiate a communication with user interface 16that may be delivered to and from the central controller 40 viacommunications network 18. End users 12 may review data, such asperformance characteristics of the underlying objects being traded,associated with a particular market in order to take a position, e.g.,place a wager, on any given target. Alternatively or in addition, endusers 12 may represent any device or object that seeks to initiate acommunication on behalf of another entity or element, such as a program,a database, or any other component, device, element, or item capable ofinitiating a voice or a data exchange within gaming system 10. The term“data”, as used herein, refers to any type of numeric, voice, or scriptdata, or any other suitable information in any format that may becommunicated from one point to another.

End user 12 may participate in a wager or bet, which represents thelegal instrument that may be used to bind end user 12 to a stipulatedagreement. A wager may take any appropriate form such as a writtendocument, an electronic file, such as an e-mail, a database entry, afacsimile message, a computer display, an entry in an account, a verbalagreement between two parties, etc., or a combination thereof Such awager is flexible in its terms, representations, and stipulations. Ingeneral, any information or data that may be germane or of interest to abetting participant or a hosting entity may be included in a wager,provided that the included terms are mutually agreeable to the two (ormore) parties bound by the wager.

User interface 16 may be any device that facilitates wagering on aselected financial or other market. User interface 16 is generallyoperable, either alone or in combination with central controller 40, tocommunicate at least one request associated with the wageringtransactions and/or betting opportunities disclosed herein. Userinterface 16 may also provide a portal for end users 12 to access otherelements of gaming system 10 and communicate information, such asinformation relevant to the betting opportunities provided herein andbets in response thereto, to and from the relevant components of thegaming system 10. User interface 16 may be a computer, a server, amanagement center, a single workstation, or a headquartering office forany person, business, or entity that seeks to manage or facilitatewagering activity. Accordingly, user interface 16 may include anysuitable hardware, software, devices, components, elements, or itemsthat may be utilized or implemented to achieve such operations andfunctions in a gaming environment.

In one embodiment, user interface 16 comprises any one or more of aselection of elements, such as an Internet element 20, a wirelesselement 22, a casino facility element 24, television element 28 or anyother receiver for displaying cable, satellite, closed-circuit, etc.,images or information, a biometric element 65, etc. Any suitable numberand combination of interfaces may be implemented in gaming system 10according to usage, traffic, architecture, and other considerations.

User interface 16 may be any other suitable interface or object thatfacilitates communications between end user 12 and any other elementwithin gaming system 10, such as: a cellular telephone, an electronicnotebook, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a personal or laptopcomputer, a special purpose handheld device, or any other suitabledevice, wireless or otherwise, component, or element capable ofaccessing one or more elements within gaming system 10. User interface16 may also comprise any suitable interface for a human user to interactwith system 10, such as a display, a microphone, a keyboard, a camera, amouse, a roller ball, a touch screen display, a biometric sensor, or anyother appropriate terminal equipment according to particularconfigurations and arrangements. In addition, user interface 16 may be aunique element, e.g., a special purpose computing device, designedspecifically for communications involving a wager as disclosed herein.Such an element may be fabricated or produced specifically for financialapplications involving end user 12.

User interface 16 may be owned and operated by any suitable entityhaving the ability and/or authority to operate in the gaming industry. Adirect connection may be present between user interface 16 and anyfinancial or other exchange, whereby information associated with theexchange is delivered to end user 12 and may be reviewed beforeexecuting the transaction. Thus, user interface 16 may deliver real-timemarket and/or financial data to end user 12 in order to providepertinent information to be used to make decisions as to whether toplace, purchase, or to sell a wager. This financial information may beretrieved from financial market data element 60 or any other suitableelement, such as the direct connection described above. Financial marketdata element 60 may relay data, such as pricing information, market linevalues, maturity data, financial graphs, and charts, historical quotes,or moving averages, for example, to end users 12. Other pertinentfinancial data may also be readily delivered based on particular needs.

In order to deliver information that is accurate and timely, financialmarket data element 60 may be coupled directly to a correspondingexchange communications link that carries such financial data.Alternatively, financial market data element 60 may gather suchinformation from any appropriate location, e.g., a news wire or a serveroperable to deliver real-time information to investors, such that thedesired data is delivered to end user 12. Financial data element 60 maybe embodied in software, hardware, or a combination thereof. System 10may store information received from or in connection with the financialdata element 60 in one or more databases.

User interface 16 may also include or be at least one self-servicebetting machine. In some embodiments, self-service betting machinesallow end users 12 to insert payment into a machine, such as cash or byusing a voucher or a credit/debit card, place one or more betstherewith, and receive a printout, such as a ticket, confirming that thebet was placed. The user interface 16 may also include a biometricelement 65, such as a fingerprint reader or any other biometric sensor,for authenticating the user's identify. The biometric data produced withthe biometric sensor may be used to verify the user's identity foraccount access, electronic fund transfer, etc. For example, thebiometric data may be communicated from the interface 16 to the centralcontroller 40 where the data is compared with stored biometric data forthe particular user. If the biometric data match, the user may thencontinue to wager in accordance with the methods disclosed herein.Moreover, the results of the biometric data match may be communicated toa third party, such as a bank, which may transfer funds electronicallyfrom a user's account with the third party to one or more of the user'swagering accounts with the gaming system provider based on the biometricmatch.

Printouts for winning bets may be inserted back into the self-servicebetting machine to receive a payment or a voucher, which may be used toreceive a payout from a teller. In other embodiments, self-servicebetting machines allow end users 12 to use a credit card, a debit card,or a smart card to place bets. The credit or debit card may have anassociated account, which may be a betting account provided and/ormanaged by a betting account provider using, for example, a centralizedcomputer system. The account and information pertaining thereto may alsobe stored in an end-user profile, such as that which is described belowwith reference to FIG. 3. The smart card may itself store informationregarding a betting account and various bets. In some embodiments, afterthe expiration of the bet, end user 12 may insert or swipe his or hercredit, debit, or smart card in the self-service betting machines inorder to update the balance on the card.

User interfaces 16 may also be implemented with one or more telephoneoperators and one or more websites. End users 12 may access orcommunicate with such interfaces in any appropriate manner. Telephoneoperators may communicate betting information to and take bets from endusers 12. Similarly, websites may communicate betting information to endusers 12 and allow end users 12 to place bets therewith. One or more ofsuch websites may be hosted by one or more servers associated with anowner or operator of gaming system 10.

An Internet betting provider may provide Internet account wagering byproviding online betting accounts to one or more end users 12. Using anonline betting account, a client may interface with one or more websitesassociated with the Internet betting provider in order to fund theaccount, view betting information regarding betting events, e.g., movingand static odds, moving and static reference, market, high, low, andspread lines, historic data, etc., and place bets. Such online bettingaccounts may include one or more various types of accounts, such asdeposit accounts, credit accounts, margin accounts, stop-loss accounts,and hybrid accounts, for example. Such accounts and the contents thereofmay be stored in an end-user profile, as illustrated in FIG. 3.

Communications network 18 is a communicative platform operable toexchange data or information between end user 12, user interface 16,and/or central controller 40. Communications network 18 may be anInternet architecture, which provides end user 12 with the ability toelectronically execute or initiate transactions associated with a wager.Alternatively, communications network 18 could be a plain old telephonesystem (POTS), which end user 12 could use to perform the sameoperations or functions. Such transactions may be assisted by a broker30 associated with user interface 16 or manually keyed into a telephoneor other suitable electronic equipment in order to request that atransaction be executed. In other embodiments, communications network 18could be any packet data network (PDN) offering a communicationsinterface or exchange between any two nodes in gaming system 10.Communications network 18 may alternatively or in addition be any localarea network (LAN), metropolitan area network (MAN), wide area network(WAN), wireless local arena network (WLAN) virtual private network(VPN), intranet, or any other appropriate architecture or system thatfacilitates communications in a network or telephonic environment, or acombination thereof.

In one embodiment, central controller 40 includes processor 42 andmemory element 44. Central controller 40 is generally operable toprovide the backend functionality with regard to the methods describedherein, such as receive requests from end user 12, and to process thoserequests such that wagers based on events occurring in a marketenvironment, such as financial transactions in a financial market, maybe executed. The resultant wager that is generated may be suitablystored in memory element 44, such as in a database 45 or in any othersuitable form, after being properly managed and secured by processor 42.Processor 42 may also assist in processing any betting terms orconditions, e.g., desired expiration, type of exchange, odds, referenceline, market line, high line, low line, spread line values, etc.,requested by end user 12. In cases where central controller 40 is unableto match the requested betting parameters or tendered wager termsprovided by end user 12 with that which is available in the marketplace, central controller 40 may contact end user 12 and notify end user12 of the circumstances surrounding the inability to fulfill such awager.

Processor 42 may comprise any suitable processor that executes a bettingsystem application or other computer instructions that facilitatewagering. Processor 42 may be a CPU and/or a microprocessor, and mayinclude any suitable number of processors working together. Processor 42is generally operable to execute software, various algorithms,computations, or calculations to determine current bet data, such asbetting values, betting odds, market, high, low, or spread lines, movingor static, and/or potential payout data, etc., to performauthentication, verification, or any other function in furtherance ofthe methods disclosed herein. Processor 42 may determine such currentbet data based on data received from memory element 44 and/or financialmarket data element 60. In addition, processor 42 may update suchcurrent bet data based on new information being received from financialmarket data element 60. In some embodiments, processor 42 may updatecurrent bet data in real-time, substantially in real-time, or at presetintervals, such as every five to thirty seconds. In addition, processor42 may perform the operations described herein to establish wageringodds, moving market lines or levels, and provide betting opportunitiesto end users 12 based thereon. In other embodiments, odds are determinedexternal to gaming system 10 and simply fed to central controller 40from an external link.

Memory element 44 may comprise one or more memory devices thatfacilitate wagering or that store information relating thereto, such asone or more random access memories (RAMs), read-only memories (ROMs),dynamic random access memories (DRAMs), fast cycle RAMs (FCRAMs), staticRAM (SRAMs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), erasableprogrammable read-only memories (EPROMs), electrically erasableprogrammable read-only memories (EEPROMs), microcontrollers, ormicroprocessors, hard drives, optical media, magnetic media, etc., or acombination thereof Memory element 44 is also generally operable tostore data that may be used by processor 42 in determining odds and/orpayouts. In addition to storing betting information, the memory element44 may store software thereon that when executed performs some or all ofthe functions disclosed herein.

It should be noted that the internal structure of central controller 40is malleable and can be readily changed, modified, rearranged, orreconfigured in order to achieve its intended operations. Accordingly,central controller 40 may be equipped with any suitable component,device, application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), hardware,software, processor, algorithm, ROM element, RAM element, EPROM, EEPROM,or any other suitable object that is operable to facilitate theoperations of central controller 40. Considerable flexibility isprovided by the structure of central controller 40 in the context ofgaming system 10.

In an alternative embodiment, user interface 16, communications network18, and/or central controller 40 may be replaced entirely or partiallywith a person, providing a human interface between end user 12 and awager involving a financial market. In such an embodiment, an agent ofuser interface 16 (or any other suitable person or representative) maybe contacted by end user 12, e.g., via the telephone, a network, othersuitable electronic equipment, or directly by word of mouth. The agentor representative may receive a request from end user 12 to execute atransaction involving a wager, such as submitting a bet request, theterms of the bet request, etc. The agent or representative may thenproxy or broker the request to an appropriate entity for execution ofthe wager. The agent or representative may then record the transactiononce it has been consummated and subsequently contact end user 12 toconfirm that the transaction has been executed. A receipt of anysuitable type may then be issued to end user 12 indicating the terms ofa wager. Additional details relating to the internal structure ofcentral controller 40 are provided below with reference to FIG. 3.

Administrator module 50 is an element that cooperates with centralcontroller 40 in order to ensure a fair and proper execution of wageringtransactions initiated by end user 12. Administrator module 50 is anoptional component of gaming system 10. Administrator module 50 may beused in certain embodiments to control any operation of centralcontroller 40. For example, administrator module 50 may be used tomanually set betting odds, to approve margin requests or individual betrequests, or to halt specific wagering activities. In selectedinstances, administrator module 50 may call for additional marginsthroughout the day without waiting for a routine end-of-day settlement.In still other scenarios, administrator module 50 may be used forgeneral monitoring functions. In this instance, the administrator module50 may serve as an interface for users to submit at least one query fordata stored in the system, such as in a table or database. The module 50may also serve as an interface for parsing, extracting, filtering,removing, etc., or more generally processing data stored on the system.The administrator module 50 may be accessed with a provider interface32, which may be any type of device for communicating with the centralcontroller 40 and/or administrator module 50, as may be the end userinterface 16. Moreover, the administrator module 50 may be implementedin software, hardware, or a combination thereof.

FIG. 2 shows an interface screen or page 70 for use in connection withat least one embodiment of the methods and systems disclosed herein.Interface screen 70 generally provides an opportunity for end user 12 tobet on whether a variable associated with a selected market or objectwithin the market will achieve a level above or below defined marketlevels or lines, such as the market line 71, high line 73, low line 75,and spread lines 77, at the end of a trading session or trading day, asthe case may be. The expirations associated with the bet or bets may bevariable as discussed above. For illustrative purposes, the expiry 79for the interface shown in FIG. 2 is a daily expiry ending at the closeof the market

The interface of FIG. 2 illustrates that system 10 may produce aninterface screen that includes one or more betting lines, graphicobjects, buttons, and/or text that collectively provide up to eightbetting opportunities, for the static odds and/or the moving oddsembodiments discussed above, on the value of one or more referencevariables associated with the object, such as the value of an index, aparticular security or securities, or any other alienable item. Theterms graphic or graphic object are used herein to denote any item thatmay be displayed on an interface screen and that has been configured tobe selected by an end user 12 for submitting a bet request on at leastone of the betting opportunities provided therewith, including, but notlimited to, static or video images, text, and buttons, etc. Theinterface 70 may include a list 72 that includes at least one selectablelink for placing bets in a selected exchange.

The up to eight available betting opportunities are based on the abilityfor a user to bet that the specified market or object therein will closeabove or below one or more of four separately defined levels. In thisrespect, the interface screen 70 may display at least one betting linehaving a value 81 corresponding to the selected reference variable ofobject 89, such as the market price of the object 89, which value 81 maybe displayed superimposed on a line 71, with a selectable graphic for auser to place a bet on the up position 76 a (an up bet) and at least oneselectable graphic for a user to place a bet on the down position 76 b(a down bet) relative to the value 81 of betting line 71. The interfacescreen 70 may similarly display a value for each betting line, such as avalue 83 associated with the high line 73, a value 85 associated with alow line 75, and values 87 a, 87 b associated with spread lines 77, eachof the betting lines also corresponding to the value of the selectedreference variable, with corresponding graphics for placing bets ineither an up or a down position relative to each line.

In one embodiment, the graphic objects display the odds for betting onthe particular position made available therewith. The lines may also bedisplayed on the interface screen 70 in a spatial relationship based onthe value of the particular line relative to the other line or lines. Asshown in FIG. 2, the lines may be arranged spatially with a lower valueline depicted below lines with at a higher value. The spatial distancebetween lines may move to reflect any narrowing in the spread betweenlines. The distance, for instance, may narrow to provide a to-scalerepresentation of the betting lines or may expand to provide a zoom inrepresentation of the betting lines. The graphics and/or text displayedon the interface screen may be updated dynamically to reflect changes inthe value of the object or changes in the odds for the bettingopportunities. The betting data, such as the betting lines and odds, arepreferably refreshed automatically without user intervention.

In one embodiment, interface screen 70 includes a high line 73, thecurrent market line 71, and a low line 75 for betting on an index, suchas the FTSE. In the static odds embodiment, the value of the currentreference betting line, e.g., the market line, is changing, preferablyto reflect real-time changes in the value of the index. Accordingly, thehigh line and the low line values may also be moving based on changes inthe moving market level, for instance, if the high and low lines areabout 1% of the market value above or below the reference then currentmarket level line, respectively. Note, in more volatile markets or basedon particular needs, such high and low lines may be + or − any suitablepercentage level or amount from the reference betting line, such as themarket line, in order to achieve desired static odds for each bettingposition.

The high line 73 in the example of FIG. 2 is at 4404. The higher (upbet) and lower (down bet) betting opportunities represent constant fixedor static odds that persist for at least the betting session. The higherodds will generally be odds against the current levels (a shortposition) and the lower odds will be odds for supporting current levels(a long position or ‘odds-on’). Thus, a set of bet graphics 74 a and 74b may reflect the short and long positions for the high line,respectively. Bet 74 a includes odds of 5/1, while bet 74 b includesodds of 1/12. Similarly, a set of bet graphics 80 a and 80 b may beprovided, reflecting the higher (up bet, long position) at 1/12 odds andlower (down bet, short position) at 5/1 odds, respectively.

As noted above, the value of market line 71 may be moving or changingconstantly to reflect the actual market level for the object, such asthe FTSE, with static odds in relation to the higher (up bet) or lower(down bet) betting opportunities, approximately 10/11 in this example.The then current market line is at 4354 and includes a set of betgraphics 76 a and 76 b, which represent higher (up bet) and lower (downbet) positions that are both accompanied by 10/11 odds. Additionally,another set of bet graphics 78 a and 78 b may be provided at derivationsof the reference then current market line 71, i.e., at the spread lines.The two bets on the spread lines are offered at levels of 4361 and 4348respectively, which are computed to provide even betting odds for boththe up bet and down bet betting opportunities. Thus, a second nearcurrent market level, which is also moving in relation to the marketline, is provided that allows customers to bet at even money that themarket will expire above or below the market spread, i.e., the spreadlines. In this example, a thirteen point spread straddles the referencemarket middle line and offers additional betting opportunities for enduser 12.

The value of the high line and the low line, in addition to reflectingmarket movements, may also move over time in order to maintain thedesired odds static throughout the trading session. The spread betweenthe high line, the market line, and the low line will generally narrowor move closer based at least on remaining time in the session or as thesession's expiry draws near. This is also true for the values of thespread lines in order for odds for bets thereon to remain even for thehigher (up bet products) and the lower (down bet products) positions(bets 78 a and 78 b). Thus, such lines are floating, not only in thesense of market movements, but are also converging as time progressestoward the close of the betting session. For example, with five minutesleft to go for a wager in a daily betting session, these lines will bequite narrow. Thus, the high line generally comes down and the low linegenerally goes up during the course of the trading day or bettingsession, as the case may be, while odds remain relatively consistent.

Note also, over time, as markets or betting sessions close, certainbetting opportunities may be disabled or otherwise eliminated based ofpractical constraints. For example, certain markets generally move inwhole number increments. Therefore, spreads that are too narrow toprovide betting opportunities practically thereon, e.g., such as thebetting opportunities provided with bet graphics 74 a, 74 b, 78 a, 78 b,80 a, and 80 b, may be disabled as the markets draw to a close.

Betting providers may therefore constrain betting opportunities bydisabling, e.g., the high line and the low line if the lines are anycloser than five to ten ticks, or any other amount from the market lineor from each other. Betting providers may also disable bettingopportunities if the odds are too high, such as above or equal to athreshold of 100/1, or too low, such as below or equal a threshold of1/28. Betting opportunities may be disabled simply by removing thegraphic associated with the particular disabled bet or by changing thecolor of the graphic, e.g., to a color having a different intensity thanthe original color, and/or removing the odds displayed over the graphicobject associated with the particular betting opportunity on thegraphic, as shown in FIG. 7. For example, a graphic originally brightred may be replaced with the graphic in a light red color. It isunderstood that any type of change may be used to indicate that a bethas been eliminated, such as by replacing a moving graphic with anon-moving graphic, a rotating graphic with a non-rotating graphic, anopaque with a transparent or translucent graphic, etc. In addition todisabling the whole line, providers may disable only portions thereof,such as the up bet graphic and/or the down bet graphic.

In one embodiment, the graphics reflect a tradeability state of thebetting opportunity. The tradeability state may be at least one of:“tradeable”, “viewable”, and “off”. In the tradeable state, the graphicassociated with the betting opportunity is both viewable and tradeable,i.e., users may place bets by selecting the graphic. In the viewablestate, the graphic is viewable but not tradeable, e.g., the bettingopportunity has been eliminated or otherwise disabled. In the off state,the product is neither vieweable nor tradeable.

The 1/12 and 5/1 odds for long bets 74 b and 80 a, and short bets 74 aand 80 b, respectively, reflect static odds for their correspondinglines, i.e., 4404 and 4306, which are determined based on the timeremaining in the betting session and/or the volatility of the market.Thus, the end user 12 may select graphic 74 a and submit therewith a betof $100 with 5/1 odds that the FTSE will close above the high line. Atthe end of the trading day, if the FTSE closes at 4425, the bet is awinning bet and may be settled thereafter. In this instance, end user 12would collect $500 (W*(5/1)) from the winning bet plus his originalstake, which would yield $600 total. If the end user 12 instead selectsgraphic 74 b and submits therewith a bet of $100 with 1/12 odds, at theclose of the betting session, the bet would be identified as a losingbet and end user 12 would lose the $100 bet. If, on the other hand, theFTSE closed at 4390, end user 12 would be rewarded with $100 (1/12) (theodds offered) plus his original stake. This would yield a return ofapproximately $108.33 for the winning bet.

As described above, the price or value of the market or other referenceline that is being offered to end user 12 can be provided by acommunications feed. This feed could reflect daily market conditions andeffectively encompass news flow and other financial parameters thatcould potential affect the market. Other embodiments, described morefully below, offer an owner or operator of gaming system 10 considerableflexibility in setting market lines and odds.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of central controller 40, according to oneembodiment, which may be included within gaming system 10. Centralcontroller 40 comprises processor 42 coupled to memory element 44.Processor 42 may execute one or a number of applications to performvarious features and functions for creating betting opportunities in oneor more betting sessions, receiving bets thereon, and settling bets onthe value of one or more of a plurality of financial instruments,securities, indices, objects, etc. Memory element 44 may store suchapplications, various incarnations of the betting instruments 90, and/orany other relevant information associated with the betting instruments90. In a particular embodiment, processor 42 includes or is associatedwith at least one of an odds determination module 84 that is operable toestablish, compute, or otherwise determine odds for the positionsassociated with one or more of the betting lines disclosed herein, aprice/level determination module 86 that is operable to establish,compute, or otherwise determine a price or value for the one or more ofthe betting lines disclosed herein, and bet settler module 88, operableto settle one or more bets, each of the modules generally for providingend user 12 with wagering opportunities thereon.

Betting instruments 90 are generally data elements derived from or thatevidence a wager that is made with respect to the outcome of one or moreevents associated with a financial or other market. Accordingly, thebetting instrument 90 may be a file or a database entry that includesinformation reflecting bets placed in system 10, which instrument 90 mayinclude parameters relevant to the particular event that forms the basisof the wager. The events might involve the movement or the value of afinancial market index, security, or other instrument during or at theend of a predetermined period of time, as described above. Suchinstruments 90 may include all relevant financial data and obligationterms associated therewith, such as, where applicable, the participant'sidentification information, account information, the amount of thewager, the market line level, the high line level, the low line level,spread line levels, up and down odds for each line, the time the bet isplaced, the betting session the bet was placed in, the opening time, theexpiration time, a bet identification number, the status of the bet,e.g., approved (manually or automatically), pending, expired, win, loss,etc., or a combination thereof. The memory element 44 may also includeone or more templates and/or tables 94 for use in generating bettingsessions as discussed in greater detail below.

In operation, in one embodiment, the movement of a financial market maybe graphically represented on an electronic screen using symbols orgraphic objects, such as color-coded, e.g., red, green, or yellow,arrows. Each symbol may indicate whether the value of the associatedfinancial market indicator, e.g., the reference variable, was: 1) downduring the last predetermined period of time, e.g., the last bettingsession, or after the last relevant transaction or transactions in themarket for the object, shown, e.g., as a red down arrow or simply in anappropriately colored graphic or textual object; 2) up during the lastpredetermined period of time or after the last relevant transaction ortransactions shown, e.g., as a green up arrow or appropriately coloredgraphic or textual object; or 3) unchanged during the last predeterminedperiod of time or after the last relevant transaction or transactions,e.g., yellow horizontal arrow or simply by leaving the graphic ortextual object in an original color. Any suitable number and combinationof symbols could represent a suitable portion of the history of, or themovement in, the value of the reference variable. For example, the colorof the market line, the typeface of displayed value, a text box aroundthe displayed value, etc., may be a first color, e.g., blue, indicatingupward movement in the value of the object. Similarly, the color of themarket line, typeface, textbox, etc., may be a second color, e.g., red,indicating downward movement in the value of the object. The directionof the movement may be derived from information that would, for example,indicate that the object is under-bought or under-sold.

Memory element 44 of central controller 40 may store informationregarding the various types of different wagers that may be placed andtheir outcomes in gaming system 10. Memory element 44 may also storevarious betting instruments 90 and a plurality of end-user profiles 92.Memory element 44 may additionally store information associated with afinancial instrument number (FIN), a description of the market(s) thatare the subject of the particular wager, a designated duration/expiry,and odds established for the particular wager. These fields, and others,may be defined in numerous ways. For example, the term ‘expiry’ mayrefer to a particular closing or settlement time and/or date for bettinginstrument 90 to close, or it may be based on the events themselves thatmay be completed at some arbitrary or specific date in the future, e.g.,at the closing bell.

Additionally, each end-user profile 92 may include any relevantinformation associated with end user 12, his wagering activity,biometric data, or his finances. For example, items such as accountnumbers, transactional history, balances, commissions, available funds,potential debits/credits may be reflected in a profile, a finger printprofile, etc. End-user profiles 92 may be pin-accessed by end user 12 oraccessed solely by an entity or administrator authorized to do so.

Odds determination module 84 generally determines the odds provided toend user 12 for a particular wager and price determination module 84determines the betting line values provided to end user 12 for aparticular wager. Three factors may generally be considered in settingodds and/or betting line values for betting opportunities: theunderlying market or generally the reference level, volatilities, andtime. Volatility represents a measure of uncertainty exhibited by themarket over a given time period. Markets generally follow log-normaldistribution, which reflects an abstraction or theory that allows aperson to reasonably approximate market movements. In this sense, themathematics used to calculate odds/betting line values could be similarto that of options pricing. In other scenarios, odds calculations may bebased at least on exposure for an owner/operator of gaming system 10.Note that a number of control parameters are provided to anadministrator of gaming system 10. For example, the volatility factormay be manipulated in response to breaking news that would most likelyaffect market levels. This judgment may be made by an administrator andreflect his own judgment and/or expertise in market theories. In otherscenarios, such news items would automatically be priced into thefinancial market.

In an alternative embodiment, odds determination module 84 determinesodds for a particular wager based on the following formula:odds=(prize value/risk value)*factor.Therefore, odds could be variable based, at least in part, on the prizevalue and the risk value. In still other embodiments, odds determinationmodule 84 may use or consider any number of influential factors to varyodds for bets that are offered to end users 12. Any number of newsitems, statistical data, or events, may affect or influence a givenmarket. These factors may be taken into consideration by anadministrator in setting odds and/or the betting line values. Suchfactors may include market news or commentary, job data, interest rateinformation, commodity prices, consumer spending, consumer confidence,unemployment information, economic growth, capital spending, grossdomestic product (GDP) data, bond prices, or any other piece ofinformation or data that may have an influential effect on a givenmarket line. For example, a decrease in interest rates generally spawnsan increase in the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) for that tradingday odds determination module 84 may calculate odds in a systematicmanner, as described herein, and then factor in this information suchthat the odds are generally shifted to accommodate for the probabilityof gains in that day's market performance. In other embodiments, suchinformation is built into the market line in a manner that is suitableto an administrator and, therefore, such manipulations are unnecessary.

In an example scenario, consider that the S&P 500 rarely performs poorlyin an election year in the United States. Only twice in the history ofthe U.S. stock markets has the S&P 500 provided a negative return forinvestors during an election year. Thus, during an election year,control parameters may be implemented to reflect the proposition that,over the course of the year, the S&P 500 is most likely to rise.Similarly, markets tend to decline in times of war or during patterns ofinterest rate increases. In the event of a major war or in the eventthat such a pattern, of systematic interest rate increases, isidentified, an administrator could again manipulate the odds, as he seesfit, e.g., specifying a desired volatility factor, to reflect thisprobable downward trend.

In still other scenarios, the odds associated with a market may beestablished based on the current market line in conjunction with theproportion of money bet on that market versus the total amount of moneyaccumulated in the relevant betting pool. Because each set of oddscorresponds to a percentage, each participant is also associated with apercentage. In order to form a group of participants for a bet withouttakeout, gaming system 10 can select participants from the field ofparticipants whose percentages total an amount that corresponds to theodds. The percentage corresponding to the odds is also referred to as atarget percentage. For example, for an even money bet, i.e., targetpercentage of 50%, if the lead participant of a group of participantshas 5-2 odds and, therefore, is associated with a percentage of 28%,gaming system 10 may form the group of participants by selecting otherparticipants whose percentages total 22%, such as a participant having7-2 odds (22%); participants having 4-1 odds (20%) and 50-1 odds (2%);or participants having 7-1 odds (12%) and 9-1 odds (10%). In anotherexample, for a bet having odds of 2-1, i.e., target percentage of 33%,if the lead participant of a group of participants has 6-1 odds and,therefore, is associated with a percentage of 14%, gaming system 10 mayform the group of participants by selecting other participants whosepercentages total 19%, such as participants having 9-1 odds (10%) and10-1 odds (9%); participants having 5-1 odds (16%) and 30-1 odds (3%);or a single other participant having 9-2 odds (18%) or 4-1 odds (20%).

As the number of participants in an event and the odds for particularparticipants in an event vary, it may be difficult to assemble a groupof participants with a total percentage of exactly the targetpercentage. Therefore, an administrator of gaming system 10 may attemptto form a group of participants having a total percentage as close tothe target percentage as possible. In a particular embodiment, gamingsystem 10, e.g., via odds determination module 84, may establish apercentage threshold to be used to determine whether odds bets may beoffered for a particular event. For example, gaming system 10 mayestablish a threshold that is three percentage points above or below thetarget percentage. In this example, gaming system 10 offers an odds betif the total percentage for the group of participants is within threepercentage points above or below the target percentage. Where no oddsbet is established in this scenario, gaming system 10 may convert anodds bet into a straight odds bet for the lead participant. Gamingsystem 10 may attempt to form the group of participants using anysuitable number and combination of participants in the field of endusers 12. This aspect may be implemented by disabling certain bidopportunities until system 10 receives contra side wagers to satisfy thethreshold levels.

Note that in still other scenarios, the market line may be static orfixed over a given time period, whereby the odds may be varied in orderto tempt an end user or to solicit additional betting. For example, ifthe FTSE shoots up 300 points to a level of 5000 in morning trading, theodds can be varied significantly, e.g., 50/1 or 100/1, in order toentice people to bet that the FTSE will close below the original marketline. Other occurrences, involving the appreciation or depreciation ofcorresponding markets, may be readily appreciated and are, thus, clearlywithin the scope of the teachings of gaming system 10.

In the example provided above, the original market line, when the FTSEopened, was 4700. Thus, if the FTSE were at a level of 5000, odds wouldhave to be attractive enough to persuade a potential bettor to engage ina wagering opportunity involving a significant decline in the FTSE.Thus, long odds prices can be generated in order to lure punters, i.e.,bettors, to bet. Market odds could be refreshed several times per day inorder to provide new betting opportunities.

The pricing for the static odds embodiment may be computed based atleast on relationship illustrated by the following algorithms:

$\begin{matrix}{{C(\tau)} = {{\mathbb{e}}^{{- r}\;\tau}{N\left( d_{2} \right)}}} \\{{P(\tau)} = {{\mathbb{e}}^{{- r}\;\tau}\left\{ {1 - {N\left( d_{2} \right)}} \right\}}} \\{{d_{2}\left( {K,\sigma} \right)} = \frac{{\ln\left( {S/K} \right)} + {\left( {r - \frac{\sigma^{2}}{2}} \right)\tau}}{\sigma\sqrt{\tau}}} \\{\tau \equiv \frac{T - t}{365}}\end{matrix}$

-   -   where C(τ) is the Call binary price, the ‘up bet’, today    -   where P(τ) is the Put binary price, the ‘down bet’, today    -   where σ≡σ(type) is the volatility as a function of the bet type;    -   type={Hi, Mid, Lo}    -   where d₂(K, σ) is the d₂ factor used in the equation and is a        function of strike and volatility, in this model.    -   where r is the associated interest rate    -   where τ is the annualized time to expiry    -   where T is the expiry date; the number of days since the start        of the year¹    -   where t is the current date; the number of days today since the        start of the year    -   where S is the underlying mid price    -   where K is the associated strike price for the bet type i.e.        K_(Hi), K_(Mid), K_(Lo)    -   where N(•) is the cumulative Normal Distribution

The odds for the static line embodiment may be computed with at leastthe relationship illustrated by following algorithms:

$\begin{matrix}{{V_{Hi}^{+}(T)} = \left\{ \begin{matrix}\begin{matrix}{100:{S > K_{Hi}}} \\{{50:S} = K_{Hi}}\end{matrix} \\{0:{S < K_{Hi}}}\end{matrix} \right.} \\{{V_{Hi}^{+}(t)} = {\max\left\{ {{{{C\left( {S,K_{Hi},\sigma_{Hi},\tau} \right)}\left\lbrack {1 + \%_{spread}} \right\rbrack} + 1.5},3} \right\}}} \\{{{FO}_{Hi}^{+}(t)} = {{FOConv}\left( {V_{Hi}^{+}(t)} \right)}} \\{{V_{Hi}^{-}(T)} = \left\{ \begin{matrix}\begin{matrix}{100:{S < K_{Hi}}} \\{{50:S} = K_{Hi}}\end{matrix} \\{0:{S > K_{Hi}}}\end{matrix} \right.} \\{{V_{Hi}^{-}(t)} = {\max\left\{ {{{{P\left( {S,K_{Hi},\sigma_{Hi},\tau} \right)}\left\lbrack {1 + \%_{spread}} \right\rbrack} + 1.5},3} \right\}}} \\{{{FO}_{Hi}^{-}(t)} = {{FOConv}\left( {V_{Hi}^{-}(t)} \right)}}\end{matrix}$

The odds for the mid and low line up and down bets may be computed basedon a similar formula. The price for the even odds embodiment may becomputed based at least on the relationship illustrated in the followingalgorithm:K _(implied) =g(S, σ, τ, γ, V, type)

-   -   where K_(implied) is the implied strike,    -   where g(•) is the numerically inverted function,    -   where σ is the volatility,    -   where τ is the annualized time to expiry,    -   where γ is the tolerance level,    -   where V is the binary price,    -   where type is the type of option, type=(1,0)≡(call, put)

Odds determination module 84 may be employed in order to determine oddsfor this configuration. Additionally, administrator module 50 may alsoparticipate in such a process in order to establish appropriate odds orto refresh the gaming environment to offer new betting opportunities. Inother scenarios, any suitable element within gaming system 10 may beimplemented to achieve a static or moving market line arrangement,inclusive of the ability to vary odds that are used to entice bettors.

FIG. 4A is a flowchart illustrating a series of one or more stepsassociated with a method for wagering in a financial or other marketenvironment. The method may begin by starting a first betting session,at 96. The betting session may be started at any time, as discussedabove. For example, a first betting session may be started at theopening of the market on the trading day. For intraday sessions,subsequent betting sessions may be started essentially immediatelyfollowing the expiration of a previous betting session.

In one embodiment, system 10 creates a betting product, at 98. A bettingproduct may be created in a variety of ways. The betting product mayalso be created at any time, such as before or at the start time of thebetting session. For example, system 10 may provide users with a bettingproduct associated with graphic element 576 a, which allows users toplace a bet that the particular betting session will close with a marketprice for the Dow above the opening market price 581 of 11192.8 with10/11 odds, as shown in FIG. 5. In this respect, a betting product may apersistent record in a database or file that includes therein therelevant data evincing the betting product, such as the market price atthe opening of the betting session, the odds for the particular bettingopportunity, the expiration time, a product identification number, etc.In this instance, system 10 may retrieve betting product data from thedatabase and communicate a betting product to the end user 12 basedthereon for display. The database may then be updated to include thereindata on betting products for subsequent betting sessions.

System 10 may also create a less persistent betting opportunity. Thatis, system 10 may receive relevant betting data for the bettingopportunity, e.g., from financial market data element 60, and maintainthat data in memory temporarily, such as in a system cache, forsufficient time to provide betting opportunities to end users. In oneembodiment, this is accomplished by accessing one or more templates, at100, retrieving bet data based on the one or more templates, at 102, andstoring information representing the betting opportunity in memory, at104. System 10 may delete and/or create additional betting opportunitiesfrom the memory, at 108, when the betting opportunities have expired, at106, either because the session has expired or because of movement inthe underlying market, immediately or any time thereafter. In thisrespect, system 10 does not necessarily need to store each bettingopportunity persistently in a database or file.

Various types and numbers of templates may be implemented for retrievingbet data and providing betting opportunities based thereon. In oneembodiment, system 10 accesses at least one template, such as a producttemplate, that includes therein at least one field for each term of thebetting product, such as an object code, e.g., FTSE, Dow, etc., asession type, e.g., hourly, daily, etc., a start time, an end time, etc.System 10 may then access the at least one template and at least onetable that stores the desired betting data, and generate bettingproducts based thereon. For example, with regard to the betting productassociated with graphic element 576 a of FIG. 5, system 10 may access atemplate that includes fields for the object, market price, up odds, andsession length, and retrieve from at least one data source: DOW,11198.8, 10/11, and 5 minutes, respectively.

System 10 may also use a plurality of templates and/or tables, such as aproducts table, which provides the object code, and a session table,which provides the time period for the particular session type. Forexample, there may be a products table that includes a row for the FTSEand a row for the Dow and a session table that includes rows for dailyand weekly sessions with 60-minute and 7-day periods associatedtherewith, respectively. System 10 may execute software that applies thetemplate to each of the objects in the products table and in thetemplate table and create therewith a betting opportunity for each ofthe objects, including a FTSE daily and weekly betting opportunity and aDow daily and weekly betting opportunity.

System 10 may generate products on any number of objects for any sessionlength. Thus, to have a Daily FTSE, Daily Vodafone, Daily BT, WeeklyFTSE, Weekly Vodafone, Weekly BT, Hourly FTSE, Hourly Vodafone, andHourly BT, three objects may be stored in the products table, i.e.,FTSE, Vodafone, and BT, and three time periods stored in the sessiontable, i.e., Daily, Weekly, and, Hourly. The two generic tables may thenbe used by the product template to create a (3×3) number of productsthat may last for a limited time, rather than, e.g., 780 daily products,156 weekly products, 7,020 hourly products, etc. Many different types oftemplates can be created. Each template can control many products andeach product can be controlled by many templates. For example, atemplate may exist for each type of betting session, which is used toread the objects in the products table and to create a bettingopportunity for each object in the table. The number of betting productscreated may in this instance may be characterized as M*N, where M is thenumber of objects listed in the products table and N is the number ofdifferent types of sessions.

For moving market lines, the betting product may be created again toreplace products expired as a result of movement in the value of theunderlying object. Thus, a session may have a plurality of bettingproducts created consecutively therein to reflect, e.g., real-time,changes in the value of the object. In this instance, the start time forthe betting product may signal the end of a betting product startingprior in time for the same object.

At some time during the betting session, a participant may requestinformation on at least one betting product, at 110. The request may besubmitted via an interface screen, such as the interface screen shown inFIG. 2, which includes therein at least one element or link that may beselected for requesting information on at least one particular bettingproduct. For example, the interface screen may include links fordisplaying betting products associated with an object, such as index,e.g., the Dow, NASDAQ, FTSE, currencies, e.g., Euro vs. USD, etc.

In response to the request, system 10 may communicate to the participantinformation relevant to the request, at 112. The information may becommunicated to the participant in a variety of forms, such as in anelectronic file, such as an HTML or XML document, which may support thedisplay of a Flash file or other image files. The communication maycause an interface screen to be displayed at the user interface 16 withthe relevant information therein, such as the interface screens shown inFIGS. 2, and 5-11. The information communicated to the participant maybe determined in a number of ways. For example, betting productinformation, such as the market price or any other value associated withan object, may be retrieved from a database or from a streaming sourceof market data for the object. For other types of information, system 10may determine the relevant betting product information, such as highlevels, low levels, spread levels, and odds for up and down positionsfor each level, etc., as discussed above, by computing these types ofinformation.

In one embodiment, betting product information is refreshed orrepublished at least once or preferably periodically within the bettingsession, at 114. The information may be republished periodically, forexample, to reflect movement in the market value of the object,real-time or otherwise, to eliminate or disable bet graphics therebydisabling certain betting opportunities, to change color of graphics toindicate the direction of movement in the market, etc. Productinformation may be updated using Flash Media Server software thatupdates the information and media components accordingly. As notedabove, refreshing the betting product information may signal the end ofa betting product within the betting session and the creation of asubsequent betting product within the same session on the same product.The information is preferably refreshed automatically withoutparticipant intervention.

At 116, system 10 listens for a bet request from at least oneparticipant. The participant may submit a bet request in a number ofways. In one embodiment, participants submit bet requests by selecting agraphic associated with at least one betting level or line. The betrequest may also include the amount of the wager.

After receipt of the bet request, preferably in response thereto, systemmay communicate at least one term of the wager to the participant forconfirmation, at 118. The terms included may be at least one of: theparticipant's identification information, account information, theamount of the wager, the market line level, the high line level, the lowline level, spread line levels, up and down odds for each line, the timethe bet is placed, the betting session the bet was placed in, a durationfor the betting session, the opening time of the betting session, theexpiration time of the betting session, a bet identification number,etc. The terms of the request preferably reflect the particular selectedbetting product. For example, the terms for a static odds wager on themarket price of the object may include the static odds for theparticular selected position, e.g., the up or down position, and themarket price at the time the bet request is being submitted. Similarly,for a moving odds wager on the market price of the object, the terms mayinclude the odds for the selected position determined at the time thatthe bet request is being submitted and the market price at the beginningof the session. The terms may be communicated in an interface screenwith at least one selectable element therein for confirming the wagerand/or at least one element, such as a field, for the participant tomodify one or more terms, such as the amount of the wager.

Confirmed bet requests are generally received at 120 and validated at122. Validation may include one or a plurality of steps. Validation forexample, may entail determining whether the selected betting productexists, is active, and is tradeable. Validation may also entail ensuringthat the wager's expiration has not occurred in the past and that theodds or the value terms of the bet request do not differ significantlyfrom those communicated to the participant, e.g., by 50%, or that thewager is non-zero and between any minimum and maximum bounds.

At 124, a betting instrument 90 may then be created to include thereinone or more of the terms of the bet that the instrument represents, asdiscussed above. The betting instrument 90 is generally a persistentrecord, e.g., in a table, database, or within a resilient cache, that isstored at least until the settlement of the bet.

At 126, a determination is made as to whether the betting session hasexpired. If, at 126, the betting session has not expired, system 10refreshes the betting product information, at 114, and continues to doso while listening for a bet request. If system 10 determines, at 116,that the betting session has expired, system 10 proceeds to settle bets,at 128, and either start a subsequent session or end the process for thetrading day, at 132, if, at 120, there are no additional sessions to bestarted for the particular trading day. Settlement may begin immediatelyfollowing the expiration of the betting session and concurrently withthe running of the next betting session, e.g., via a debit or credit toan end-user account, or prolonged in cases where end user 12 has beenextended some amount of credit. In other cases, where the relationshipbetween end user 12 and an administrator permits, payments could besimply mailed or communicated electronically by the betting provider inthe case of a win or by end user 12 where a loss was incurred. Thebiometric data may also be used to confirm payout or debit from anauthorized account user.

Settlement may be achieved in any number of ways and based on particularneeds. A given end user 12 may have a number of bets active at any giventime. For example, end user 12 may be betting on an overall rise in theNASDAQ market, having a daily expiry, as well as a reduction (shortposition) in the German DAX (having a five-minute expiry). Accordingly,the method of FIG. 4A may be repeated for each session, object, bettingopportunity, etc., to provide such functionality. Moreover, settlementmay occur for a plurality of bets having different expiries at a commontime, such as at the last expiry of bets expiring within the sametrading day or week, or at the close of the trading day.

Any relevant information may be communicated to end users 12 of gamingsystem so that the end users may be apprised of the changing value oftheir betting instruments 90 or of news that may impact their positions.For example, market level data, employment numbers, and/or GDPstatistics may be provided to end users 12. Other information providedmay simply update the projected value of betting instrument 90 based oncurrent market conditions. An administrator of gaming system 10 mayignore this information or use it to offer new betting opportunities forpotential gamers. These opportunities may be readily displayed to endusers 12 such that they may participate in even more wageringopportunities through gaming system 10.

As noted above, bet requests may be validated in a variety of ways.Referring to FIG. 4B, in one embodiment, validation begins by receivinga bet request, at 202. A determination is made, at 204, whether anyother request has been deemed valid, at 204. If there has been noprevious validation of a bet request, e.g., within the same bettingsession, system 10 applies at least one validation test to the betrequest, at 206. System 10 may, for example, apply a test fordetermining whether the betting product exists, at 208, is active, at210, or is tradeable, at 212. System 10 may also determine whether thesession or the bet request itself has expired, at 214, or whether thebet request has at least one term that exceeds a certain limitation, at216. Any numerical limitation may be applied to the validation process,such as a limit where the system determines whether the wager exceedsthe participant's or the provider's wager limit, such as minimum,maximum, and non-zero limits, etc. System 10 may also determine whetherthe value, e.g., the market price, differs from that communicated to theparticipant within a certain period of time from receipt of the betrequest, at 218. For example, the system may validate a bet request ifthe betting line value for the bet request is no greater than a certainpercentage, e.g., 50%, or any amount from the value communicated to theparticipant within, e.g., 30 seconds, prior to the bet request. Adetermination may also be made as to the authority of the usersubmitting the bet request in doing so, such as based on the biometricdata received from the user interface and compared with that stored inthe system.

In one embodiment, a determination is made as to the whether the betrequest is suspect, at 218. That is, in certain instances, participantsmay stop incoming data from replacing outdated data previouslycommunicated to the participant. The participant may then attempt toplace bets on outdated betting line values and corresponding odds morefavorable to the participant than the current betting line values. Forexample, at time T₁ a low line value of 11183.8 for the Dow may beprovided to the participant with 6/1 down bet odds, as shown in FIG. 5.At later time T₂, as shown in FIG. 9, it can be seen that the marketprice has moved to 11255.2, below the low line value at T₁. A down betplaced on the T₁ low line value would therefore be “in the money” at theT₂ market price. Accordingly, a determination may be made as to whetherthe participant is attempting to bet on outdated more favorable bettingline values and/or odds. This may be accomplished in a variety of ways.In one embodiment, the system 10 determines if the betting line value orodds of the bet request matches any one of a certain number of thosecreated as of the time of validation. For example, in less volatilemarkets, the bet request's betting line value or odds may be required tomatch those of a current betting opportunity. In more volatile markets,the bet request may be required to match at least one of the prior threebetting opportunities. Exceptions may be applied if the current marketconditions at the time of validation are less favorable to the betrequest.

If a determination is made that the bet request is invalid, anappropriate message indicating as such may be communicated to theparticipant at 226. Similarly, valid requests may trigger a messageindicating that the bet has been deemed valid and/or accepted, at 222.

If at 204, another request has been deemed valid, system 10 may comparethe bet request with the valid request and determine if at least one ofthe terms of the bet request fall within a certain range or thresholdvalues of the validated request, at 232. If the bet request is notwithin range, the bet request may be tested with the default validationtest, at 206. If the bet request falls within the range, the bet requestmay be approved automatically and a message indicating as such may becommunicated to the participant, at 222, thereby bypassing the defaultvalidation test. Various criteria may be applied in this regard. Forexample, a bet request may be automatically approved if the time,betting line value, odds, or a combination thereof fall within a certainrange of those of a bet request verified manually or otherwise. Forinstance, a bet request may be automatically verified if the time of thebet request is within 5 seconds and 3 price units (ticks), e.g., between4503 and 4497 levels, from the betting line value of a bet requestverified manually at 4500. It is understood that the time criteria mayrange anywhere from less than 1 to 30 seconds, of more, depending on theduration of the session. The price criteria may similarly vary anywherefrom 1 to 1000 units.

FIGS. 5-8 show interface screens for use in connection with at least oneof the moving odds/static line embodiments disclosed herein. Interfacescreen 500 may include a list 72 with at least one selectable link for auser to display betting opportunities for specific objects, such as anindices link and an FX link. Each of the links may further drill downallowing users to select an index from a plurality of available indices,such as the FTSE, Dow, etc. and to select foreign exchanges from aplurality of available foreign exchanges, such as USD vs. Euro, USD vs.Yen, etc. The system may further provide a plurality of bettingopportunities on each object having different session lengths, in whichinstance, list 72 may also allow the user to drill down to specificsession lengths, such as 5-minutes, hourly, daily, weekly, etc.

With a selection of one of the links, the user is generally submitting arequest for wagering information on the selected object associated withthe link. In response to the selection, the system updates or otherwisecauses the interface screen 500 to be displayed to include at least onebetting line therein, such as a reference starting level line 571, ahigh line 573, and a low line 575. Each of the betting lines may have avalue associated therewith, e.g., superimposed over the line, such as amarket value 581 over the reference starting level line 571, a high linevalue 583 over the high line 573, and a low line value 585 over the lowline 575. Each of the lines and values may have at least one bettingopportunity graphic object associated therewith selectable for the userto submit bet requests therewith. For example, the starting level linemay have associated therewith an up bet graphic 576 a and a down betgraphic 576 b. Similarly, high and low lines may have up bet graphics574 a, 580 a and down bet graphics 574 b, 580 b associated therewith.The interface screen 500 includes the odds for each betting opportunityprovided, which may be displayed on the selectable graphic of eachbetting opportunity. Interface screen 500 may also include a live levelline 506 that indicates the value of the market at different times inthe betting session, such as to reflect real-time changes in the valueof the object. The live-level line 506 may move spatially, e.g.,vertically, relative to the betting lines displayed.

FIGS. 5-8 are interface screens providing successive bettingopportunities on the Dow in a 5-minute betting session ending August 3at 11:55 A.M. It can be seen that the betting line levels remain thesame during the betting session and the odds for each bettingopportunity change based at least on the value of the live level lines506. It can also be seen that the down betting opportunity associatedwith the high level line 574 b of FIG. 5 has been disabled in FIG. 6. Astime progresses in the betting session, all of the short positionbetting opportunity graphics 583 b, 580 b may be disabled as shown inFIG. 7. Similarly, all of the betting opportunity graphics may bedisabled near the close of the session as shown in FIG. 8. FIG. 9 showsan interface screen 500 with the down bet graphics 576 b, 583 b disabledboth for the starting level 571 line and the high level line 573 basedon movement in the live level line 506 toward those positions.

FIGS. 10-11 show interface screens for use in connection with at leastone of the static odds/moving line embodiments disclosed herein. Inresponse to the selection of one of the links 72, the system updates theinterface screen 500 to include at least one betting line therein, suchas a current level line 671, a high line 673, a low line 675, and spreadlines 677. Each of the betting lines has a value associated therewithsuperimposed over the line, such as a market value 681 over the startinglevel line 671, a high line value 683 over the high line 673, a low linevalue 685 over the low line 675, and spread value 687 a, 687 b overspread lines 677. Each of the lines and values may have at least onebetting opportunity graphic associated therewith selectable for the userto submit bet requests therewith. For example, the reference currentlevel line 671 may have associated therewith an up bet graphic 676 a anda down bet graphic 676 b. Similarly, high, low, and spread lines mayhave up bet graphics 674 a, 680 a, 678 a and down bet graphics 674 b,680 b, 678 b associated therewith. In this instance, Interface screen500 updates the current level value as well as the over betting linevalues at different times in the betting session, such as to reflectreal-time changes in the value of the object.

FIGS. 10-11 provide successive betting opportunities on the Dow in a5-minute betting session ending August 3 at 14:25 P.M. It can be seenthat the odds for each betting opportunity provided remain static forthe betting session and the value of the betting level lines change toreflect movement in the market value of the Dow. It can also be seenthat the spread between the high and low lines has narrowed from 15.5 inFIG. 10 to 14.5 in FIG. 6. Upward or downward movement in the underlyingmarket may be displayed on the interface screen. For example, upwardmovement may be shown in blue, as shown over the low line value 685 inFIG. 11, and downward movement may be shown in red, as shown over thespread line value 687 a, 687 b in FIG. 11.

While the foregoing invention has been described in some detail forpurposes of clarity and understanding, it will be appreciated by oneskilled in the art, from a reading of the disclosure, that variouschanges in form and detail can be made without departing from the truescope of the invention in the appended claims.

1. A method comprising: starting a first of a plurality of equally timed intraday betting sessions; communicating wagering information to at least one user, the wagering information comprising at least one betting value corresponding to a value of a reference variable associated with an object; receiving at a computing device from the at least one user a bet request on the at least one betting value achieving a level at an end of the first betting session that is above or below the value of the reference variable at a first time in the first betting session; starting a second of the plurality of intraday betting sessions immediately after expiration of the first betting session; communicating wagering information to at least one user, the wagering information comprising at least one betting value corresponding to a value of a reference variable associated with the object; and receiving at the computing device from the at least one user a bet request on the at least one betting value achieving a level at an end of the second betting session that is above or below the value of the reference variable at a first time in the second betting session, wherein all bets on the at least one betting value placed within each of the plurality of intraday betting sessions expire at an end of the particular betting session that the bets were placed.
 2. The method of claim 1, comprising settling bets received in the first betting session concurrently with the running of the second betting session.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the first and the second betting sessions comprising at least one of a five-minute expiration, a half-hour expiration, and an hour expiration.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein the betting value comprises a market value of the object.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein the betting value corresponds to an amount above the value of the reference variable.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the betting value corresponds an amount below the value of the reference variable.
 7. The method of claim 1, wherein the wagering information comprises a plurality of betting values, a first betting value corresponding to an amount above the reference variable and a second betting value corresponding to an amount below the reference variable.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein the object comprises a wagering event.
 9. The method of claim 1, wherein the object comprises at least one of a security and an index.
 10. The method of claim 1, comprising determining odds for at least one of an up bet request and a down bet request, the wagering information comprising the odds for the at least one of the up bet request and the down bet request.
 11. The method of claim 1, wherein the betting value is set at the start of and remains unchanged for at least the first betting session, the method comprising determining odds for at least one of an up bet request and a down bet request based at least on the value of the reference variable at a time after the start of the betting session, and wherein the wagering information comprises the odds for the at least one of the up bet request and the down bet request.
 12. The method of claim 11, wherein the bet request comprises odds determined at the time of the bet request.
 13. The method of claim 11, comprising determining at least one of the up bet odds and the down bet odds and communicating the wagering information comprising the at least one of the up bet odds and the down bet odds automatically to reflect movement in the value of the reference variable during the betting session.
 14. The method of claim 1, comprising determining odds for at least one of an up bet request and a down bet request, the odds remaining unchanged for at least the first betting session.
 15. The method of claim 14, comprising communicating the wagering information comprising the betting value automatically to reflect movement in the value of the reference variable.
 16. The method of claim 1, comprising receiving at least one bet request; determining that the at least one bet request is attempting to bet on outdated data; and communicating a message indicating that the at least one bet request is invalid.
 17. A system comprising at least one processor and a memory element having software stored thereon that when executed performs a method comprising: starting a first of a plurality of equally timed intraday betting sessions; communicating wagering information to at least one user, the wagering information comprising at least one betting value corresponding to a value of a reference variable associated with an object; receiving at a computing device from the at least one user a bet request on the at least one betting value achieving a level at an end of the first betting session that is above or below the value of the reference variable at a first time in the first betting session; starting a second of the plurality of intraday betting session immediately after expiration of the first betting session; communicating wagering information to at least one user, the wagering information comprising at least one betting value corresponding to a value of a reference variable associated with the object; and receiving at the computing device from the at least one user a bet request on the at least one betting value achieving a level at an end of the second betting session that is above or below the value of the reference variable at a first time in the second betting session, wherein all bets on the at least one betting value placed within each of the plurality of intraday betting sessions expire at an end of the particular betting session that the bets were placed.
 18. The system of claim 17, the method comprising settling bets received in the first betting session concurrently with the running of the second betting session.
 19. The system of claim 17, wherein at least one of the first and the second betting sessions comprising at least one of a five-minute expiration, a half-hour expiration, and an hour expiration.
 20. The system of claim 17, wherein the betting value comprises a market value of the object.
 21. The system of claim 17, wherein the betting value corresponds to an amount above the value of the reference variable.
 22. The system of claim 17, wherein the betting value corresponds an amount below the value of the reference variable.
 23. The system of claim 17, wherein the wagering information comprises a plurality of betting values, a first betting value corresponding to an amount above the reference variable and a second betting value corresponding to an amount below the reference variable.
 24. The system of claim 17, wherein the object comprises a wagering event.
 25. The system of claim 17, wherein the object comprises at least one of a security and an index.
 26. The system of claim 17, the method comprising determining odds for at least one of an up bet request and a down bet request, the wagering information comprising the odds for the at least one of the up bet request and the down bet request.
 27. The system of claim 17, wherein the betting value is set at the start of and remains unchanged for at least the first betting session, the method comprising determining odds for at least one of an up bet request and a down bet request based at least on the value of the reference variable at a time after the start of the betting session, and wherein the wagering information comprises the odds for the at least one of the up bet request and the down bet request.
 28. The system of claim 27, wherein the bet request comprises odds determined at the time of the bet request.
 29. The system of claim 27, the method comprising determining at least one of the up bet odds and the down bet odds and communicating the wagering information comprising the at least one of the up bet odds and the down bet odds automatically to reflect movement in the value of the reference variable during the betting session.
 30. The system of claim 29, the method comprising determining odds for at least one of an up bet request and a down bet request, the odds remaining unchanged for at least the first betting session.
 31. The system of claim 30, the method comprising communicating the wagering information comprising the betting value automatically to reflect movement in the value of the reference variable.
 32. The system of claim 17, the method comprising receiving at least one bet request; determining that the at least one bet request is attempting to bet on outdated data; and communicating a message indicating that the at least one bet request is invalid. 